State Department Blasts 'Wild Speculation' From John Bolton After Claim Clinton Faked Concussion

State Department officials pushed back on Tuesday against conservative conspiratorial rumblings alleging that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had fabricated an injury in order to avoid giving testimony on the Sept. 11 attack on a U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya.

On Monday, John Bolton, former U.N. ambassador under President George W. Bush, cast doubt on reports claiming that a dehydrated Clinton -- recovering from a recent stomach illness that had kept her from an overseas trip -- had fainted and hit her head over the weekend, resulting in a concussion. According to Bolton, Clinton had instead come up with a "diplomatic illness" -- supposedly common in the foreign service community -- to avoid heading to Capitol Hill on Thursday to testify on the Benghazi attack.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters on Tuesday that Bolton's charges were "completely untrue," later suggesting that he didn't know what he was talking about.

“I can assure you, he's not privy to any inside information," she said, referring to Bolton's allegation as “wild speculation based on no information,” according to Politico.

While Clinton's testimony was cancelled due to insistence from Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman and reported choice to replace Clinton at secretary of state, she did respond to a report on the Benghazi attack released later Tuesday.

According to an independent panel's findings, the incident, which led to the death of U.S. ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, happened in part due to systematic management and leadership failures at the State Department, which failed to provide sufficient security at the compound in Benghazi.

Clinton reportedly called the report a "clear-eyed, serious look at serious systemic challenges" and accepted all the recommendations in a letter to Congress. She also said that the State Department had begun to take appropriate action based on its findings.

Also on HuffPost:

Close



Which Women Might Run In 2016?

of





Clinton certainly has the resume to be a strong presidential contender: two terms as the first lady during her husband's popular administration, eight years as a U.S. senator from New York and four as a widely-acclaimed secretary of state under President Barack Obama. Not to mention that she has already mounted a presidential bid once before, during the 2008 Democratic primary.
With quite a following among Democrats -- particularly women -- and an expert campaigner as a husband, Clinton is one of the frontrunners for the 2016 nomination. In fact, if the Iowa caucuses were held today, a Public Policy Polling survey found she would win 58 percent of the vote, outstripping the runner-up, Vice President Joe Biden, by a margin of 41 percent.
Now the question is whether or not Clinton will decide to throw her hat in the ring in 2016. After her term as secretary of state ends this year, she has declared her intention to take a year off from politics entirely. And after that? Clinton says that she does not want to run in 2016, but that hasn't quashed hopes to the contrary.
-- Sarah Bufkin

Susana Martinez, a Republican, was elected in 2010, becoming the first female governor of New Mexico and first female Hispanic governor in the United States. Her name was also floated as a potential running mate to Mitt Romney in 2012, but she was ultimately passed over for the job. The GOP's poor showing among women and Latinos in this year's presidential election, however, could make Martinez a strong potential choice in 2016.
-- Sarafina Wright

Warren, a favorite of many liberals and a fierce advocate of financial reform, beat out Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) in their 2012 contest, putting a Democrat back in the seat formerly held by the late Ted Kennedy. Warren first made a name for herself on the political scene after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) tapped her to chair the congressional panel tasked with overseeing the distribution of the stimulus funds. A bankruptcy law expert and professor at Harvard Law School, Warren pushed for the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and later led the effort to set up the new agency. After Republicans made it clear that they would never confirm Warren as the new CFPB head, the president passed her over in favor of Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray.
In 2011, Warren declared her intention to challenge Brown for his seat. She proved to be one of the most magnetic Senate candidates, raising $39 million for her campaign and giving a primetime speech at the Democratic National Convention. Although immensely popular with Democrats, Warren has denied that she would consider a presidential run in 2016.
-- Sarah Bufkin

As one of Mitt Romney's top surrogates during the 2012 presidential campaign, Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) gained national exposure, regularly appearing on cable TV and the Sunday show circuit. Before her successful Senate election in 2010, she served as New Hampshire's attorney general. A strong conservative quickly building her profile in the Senate, Ayotte could answer the call to help Republicans win back the support of women.
-- Sarafina Wright

A progressive Democratic senator from New York, Gillibrand recently won reelection with 72 percent of the vote in 2012, the highest margin of any senator in the state's history. After serving as special counsel to Andrew Cuomo during his tenure as the secretary of housing and urban development in the Clinton administration, the former attorney worked on Hillary Clinton's successful campaign for Senate in 2000.
She credits Clinton with inspiring her to get into politics, and in 2006, Gillibrand won a House seat in the district that included her hometown of Albany, N.Y. Two years later, when her former mentor left to become the secretary of state, Gov. David Paterson appointed Gillibrand to fill Clinton's former Senate seat. Gillibrand lobbied successfully for the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy and led a campaign to get more women elected to Congress.
-- Sarah Bufkin

As the highest-ranking Republican woman in the House of Representatives, Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) is considered a rising star in the party. She was first elected in 2004 and currently serves as the vice chairman of the House Republican Conference. She is also a member of the Republican Study Committee, a caucus comprised of some of the most conservative GOP members of the House. After the 2012 election, she argued that the Republican Party does not necessarily need to be more moderate, but that it needed to embrace more "modern" positions.
-- Ian Gray

Kamala Harris, the 48-year-old Democratic attorney general of California, is the first African-American and first Indian-American to serve California in this capacity. She served as a co-chair for President Barack Obama's reelection campaign and received a high-profile speaking role at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte over the summer. Harris is perhaps best known for her successful efforts to secure a $26 billion mortgage settlement from the nation's biggest banks on behalf of homeowners in early 2012.
-- Sarafina Wright

The first African-American woman to serve as secretary of state would certainly be a trailblazer if she ran for president and became the first female commander-in-chief. A Republican, Rice is an accomplished pianist, holds a Ph.D in political science and has served as provost of Stanford University. She served as President George W. Bush's first national security adviser before moving to the State Department. Though she has never run for elected office, she was a popular choice to be Mitt Romney's vice presidential pick, due to her foreign policy credentials and ability to bridge the GOP's gap with women and non-white voters.
Correction: An earlier version of this text misstated that Rice was the first African-American secretary of state. She was the first African-American woman to serve in that position.
-- Daniel Lippman

Klobuchar, a member of Minnesota's Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, has been a U.S. senator from Minnesota since 2007, most recently cruising to reelection in November. She is currently serving on the Judiciary Committee and the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, among others. A graduate of Yale and the University of Chicago Law School, she served as the Hennepin County attorney from 1999 to 2007. She is pro-choice and supported President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.
-- Daniel Lippman

The current Republican governor of South Carolina, Haley won her first term in 2010 after serving for five years as a member of the state house. She is only the second Indian-American to serve as governor. Endorsed by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and the Tea Party movement, Haley takes a hard line on immigration and is ardently anti-tax.
Many have touted her as one of the new post-racial faces of the Republican Party in the South, and she would certainly appeal to the GOP's right-wing elements. Haley was a visible surrogate for Mitt Romney during the 2012 election and was even included on his short list for vice president, but she has not indicated one way or the other if she would put herself in the running for the GOP nomination in 2016.
-- Sarah Bufkin

Maggie Hassan, the Democratic governor-elect of New Hampshire, will become only the second woman to have held the state's highest office when she is sworn in next year. Hassan was endorsed by former President Bill Clinton over the summer and has been praised as a strong fundraiser, having broken the record for the most money raised by a first-time gubernatorial candidate in New Hampshire.
-- Ian Gray

A former lieutenant governor, member of Congress and current governor of Oklahoma, Republican Mary Fallin would bring solid conservative credentials to the GOP ticket. She won her gubernatorial race easily in 2010 and will reach her term limit if she runs and wins in 2014. A Fallin candidacy in 2016, however, would run the risk of bringing about comparisons to Sarah Palin's in 2008 -- as a deeply religious, female governor of a sparsely populated and reliably conservative state. She even received Palin's endorsement in 2010.
-- Ian Gray

Granholm, the feisty former Democratic governor of Michigan, is now the host of The War Room television show on Current TV. Born in Canada, she became the first female governor of her state in 2003 and served until 2011, championing the critically important auto sector during a period of intense challenges. She reminded voters of her passionate nature at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, where she delivered an animated address.
A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and Harvard Law School, Granholm served as her state's attorney general before being elected governor. She has three children.
While Granholm would currently be barred from running due to the Constitution's requirement that presidential candidates be natural-born, there have long been arguments about amending the language to allow for naturalized citizens to run as well.
This post has been updated with additional information about Granholm's birthplace and constitutional restrictions
-- Daniel Lippman

The former Republican governor of Alaska, Palin shot to fame after she was picked as Arizona Sen. John McCain’s vice-presidential running mate in 2008. Since then, she's become a Fox News contributor and a hero to many conservatives and Tea Party members. She also wrote the best-seller "Going Rogue: An American Life" in 2009 and has dabbled in reality television. Though she still has star-power in some circles, Democrats and many independents remain skeptical about Palin’s policy chops.
-- Daniel Lippman

Despite her astronomical public approval rating, Michelle Obama would be something of a surprise candidate in 2016, considering her husband's current role.
You might expect to see the first lady as a surrogate for the future Democratic nominee though. Her popularity and skills as a campaigner will likely be called upon by whomever gets the nod.
-- Sarafina Wright

In 2010, Alaska Republican Lisa Murkowski became the first successful write-in candidate for U.S. Senate since South Carolina's Strom Thurmond in 1954. She was first appointed to the Senate in 2002 by her father, Gov. Frank Murkowski, after having previously served in the Alaska House of Representatives.
Her candidacy in 2016 would likely face headwinds from the GOP base, due to her relatively moderate positions on abortion and stem cell research. Additionally, she was one of just five Republicans to support the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which passed in 2009.
-- Sarafina Wright

Gregoire, formerly the Democratic governor of the state of Washington, is the second female to serve in that position. A lawyer, Gregoire was elected attorney general of her state in 1992 before being elected governor in 2004 in a razor-tight race against Republican Dino Rossi. She was reelected in 2008 and also served as the chairwoman of the National Governors Association for the 2010-11 term. One of her top accomplishments as governor included a plan to raise revenue to fund new transportation improvements to fix roads in Washington. She is a supporter of gay marriage, which was passed in her state in 2012.
-- Daniel Lippman
This slide was first published before the 2012 elections and has been updated to reflect that Gregoire left office in January 2013.

The Republican Tea Party favorite from Minnesota has already attempted a run at the White House and failed to clear the hurdles of the GOP primary, but she could be up to give it another go. Bachmann is an outspoken conservative who stands with the right-wing segment of the party. She opposes tax increases, big-government spending, the Affordable Care Act, environmental regulation and gay rights.
The four-term congresswoman is an adroit fundraiser, employing a strategy that allows her to make controversial statements on public platforms and then reap the funding windfall. In 2008, she brought in nearly $1 million after accusing President Barack Obama of having anti-American views. But the Minnesotan barely clung on to her seat in the 2012 election, eeking out a win by just over 4,000 votes -- which calls into question her ability to attract the majority of the GOP electorate and independent voters four years from now.
-- Sarah Bufkin

First elected in 2010 during the Tea Party wave, Republican Kristi Noem was chosen to represent the freshman class as a liaison to the House GOP leadership. Noem was then reelected in 2012 as South Dakota's sole representative in the House, easily defeating Democratic challenger Matt Varilek. Though she turned down a run for reelection in her leadership role, she remains a member of the conservative Republican Study Committee and has been a vocal critic of President Barack Obama. Noem would likely play up her family's farming and ranching business in a 2016 run, as well as her tenure on the Agriculture Committee, to shore up support in midwestern states.
-- Ian Gray

As Florida's Republican attorney general, Pam Bondi was a leader in the failed effort to overturn President Barack Obama's signature legislative achievement, the Affordable Care Act. At the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., Bondi drew attention for her assertion that Obama has a "total disregard for our individual liberty." Given her status as a female public figure serving in a swing state, who has worked to achieve one of the GOP's core goals (repealing Obamacare), expect to hear Bondi's name more in the years to come.
-- Ian Gray